Today in History — May 1

Below:

Today is Tuesday, May 1, the 121st day of 2007. There are 244 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:
On May 1, 1898, Commodore George Dewey gave the command, “You may fire when you are ready, Gridley,” as an American naval force destroyed a Spanish fleet in Manila Bay during the Spanish-American War.

On this date:
In 1707, the Kingdom of Great Britain was created as a treaty merging England and Scotland took effect.

Ten years ago: Britons went to the polls in a national election that gave the Labour Party a resounding victory over the ruling Conservatives. John and Patsy Ramsey, the parents of slain child beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey, publicly declared their innocence, and asked for the public’s help in finding the killer of their 6-year-old daughter.

Five years ago: Israeli armored vehicles began leaving Yasser Arafat’s battered West Bank compound, ending his five months of confinement. Well over a million people across France marched against far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen, four days before Le Pen was soundly defeated by President Jacques Chirac in a runoff.

One year ago: Hundreds of thousands of mostly Hispanic immigrants in the U.S. skipped work and took to the streets, flexing their economic muscle in a nationwide boycott. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Anna Nicole Smith could pursue part of her late husband’s oil fortune. Bolivian President Evo Morales nationalized the country’s vast natural gas industry.

Thought for Today: “Any man who has the brains to think and the nerve to act for the benefit of the people of the country is considered a radical by those who are content with stagnation and willing to endure disaster.” — William Randolph Hearst, American newspaper publisher (1863-1951).